I am willing to bet that more times than not, you find those types of key people at REIAs or thru mutual connections, and also that you find them when you aren't really looking for them.

Sometimes I can look at the name on the appraisal and know it's one of our dudes that gets things in same-day, but I wouldn't bet on that for VA.Closing Disclosure needs to be issued / re-issued.

Smyrna is very popular and I've locked up several tenants there on 24 month leases with the pitch that it will keep their rents stable as the area continues to grow. 

At the vary lest you should pan on having some cash reserves if something major comes up.While at that price you may be in neighborhoods that have the potential to appreciate, I bet your actual cash flow is less that the $450 a month you project.

You bet.

We do not plan on living here for 30 years and I know not to bet on appreciation so I will do some value add to the house over time and expand it to a 4 bed 2.5 bath with less than a 40k investment, the layout will support it.

Woodcroft is always a safe bet but many of the houses are a dark/rustic style that is hard to update. 

That being said, if you buy a 2-4 family unit and plan to live in one unit, you can take advantage of the 203K.The 203K combines the purchase and repair funds, but you still need to have 3.5% down payment and money for the closing costs.Any time you purchase a property from a motivated seller, you can take advantage of that opportunity to purchase it for less than market value, which is why distressed properties are popular with investors.

It seems the popular thing to do is get a DP1 policy that covers any loan and if the house burns down, have it pay off the loan and walk away (at least that's the way my Indiana agent framed it).  

Is the best bet to turn my back to all of the properties listed, and ignore them?